Electrical connector
The electrical connector may include an insulative housing and a support member. The housing may include a first surface, a second surface, a first side, and at least one aperture disposed from the first surface to the second surface. The support member may be mounted to the first side to provide rigidity to the insulative housing. The support member may include a mounting latch to attach the support member to the housing. The support member may also include an anchor tab which may be soldered to a component, such as, a printed circuit board.
Latest Cinch Connectors, Inc. Patents:
An electrical connector including a housing and electrical contacts is used for establishing electrical communication between electrical components, such as between an IC chip package and a printed circuit board.
BRIEF SUMMARYIn one embodiment, an electrical connector comprises an insulative housing and a support member. The housing may include a first surface, second surface, a first side, and at least one aperture disposed from the first surface to the second surface. The support member may be mounted to the first side to provide rigidity to the insulative housing. The electrical connector may further comprise an electrical contact disposed within the aperture for establishing electrical communication from the first surface to the second surface, such that the contact may electrically connect two electrical components such as an IC chip package and a printed circuit board. The support member may be stiffer than the insulative housing.
In one embodiment, the support member may include a first mounting latch having upper and lower tabs that are received by a first latch slot on the first surface housing and a second latch slot on the second surface of the housing, respectively, such that the tabs are retained therein to secure the support member to the first side. The support member may also include a first anchor tab.
In another embodiment, a support member for an electrical connector may comprise a center beam and a first mounting latch. The mounting latch may be a clamping device. The mounting latch may include upper and lower tabs configured to be received by respective slots on an insulative housing of an electrical connector to mount the support member thereto.
Referring to
The support members 70, 72, 74, 76 may server as strain-relief and straightening components for the electrical connector 50. The support members 70, 72, 74, 76, by nature of their mounting to the insulative housing 52, may restrain deflection of the housing 52 and provide rigidity against the effects of either bow within the housing 52 or from an external force that may be applied to the connector 50 or housing 52. The support members 70, 72, 74, 76 may thereby ensure that the electrical contacts disposed within the apertures 80 are not dislocated from their positions by deflection, bow, or bending of the insulative housing 52. By helping to constrain the insulative housing 52 substantially within a single plane, the support members 70, 72, 74, 76 assist in maintaining the contacts within a substantially uniform plane of distribution. This helps ensure that the contacts remain in contact with other electrical components that may be disposed against the first or second surfaces 54, 56 of the housing 52 when the electrical connector 50 is assembled in an electrical assembly.
The support members 70, 72, 74, 76 may be used with a variety of insulative housings. The insulative housing 52 of the electrical connector 50 may be of various configurations that could benefit from the support of the support members 70, 72, 74, 76. For example the insulative housing may be any appropriate housing disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2007-0178719 A1 (U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/634,593), which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The support members 70, 72, 74, 76 may be substantially similar. Accordingly, only the first support member 70 will be described in detail. Referring to
The support member 70 may include an upper wall 112 that extends from the upper edge 94 and a lower wall 114 that extends from the lower edge 96. Both the upper and lower walls 112, 114 may extend away from the inside surface 90 of the support member 70. The upper wall 112 may include a first portion 120 and a second portion 122 disposed proximate the upper tabs 104, 108 of the first and second mounting latches 100, 102, respectively. The lower wall 114 may be comprised of a portion 123 that is substantially centered on the support member 70.
Referring to
In other embodiments, the mounting latches, anchor tabs, and walls may be arranged differently on the support member. In one embodiment, the mounting latches may not be disposed at the distal ends of the support member. In another embodiment, the anchor tabs may be located outside of the mounting latches. In another embodiment, the support member may include only a single anchor tab or a single mounting latch. In another embodiment, the support member may include more than two mounting latches or more than two anchor tabs. In yet another embodiment, the support member may not include upper or lower walls.
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
The support members may be useful in ensuring a substantially planar state in the housing in several circumstances. The housing may be molded in a molding process, which may cause the housing to be predisposed to bowing. The bow in the housing may cause the flatness profile may to be beyond the desired specifications. Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Exemplary embodiments are described herein. Variations of those embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventor(s) expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventor(s) intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
Claims
1. An electrical connector comprising:
- an insulative housing including a first surface, a second surface, a first side, and at least one aperture disposed from the first surface to the second surface; and
- a support member mounted to the first side to provide rigidity to the insulative housing.
2. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the electrical connector further comprises an electrical contact disposed within the aperture for establishing electrical communication from the first surface to the second surface.
3. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the support member is stiffer than the insulative housing.
4. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the insulative housing is comprised of polymer and the support member is comprised of metal.
5. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the electrical connector includes a second support member, a third support member, and a fourth support member mounted to respective second, third, and fourth sides of the insulative housing.
6. The electrical connector of claim 5 wherein the support members constrain the insulative housing substantially within a single plane.
7. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the support member extends along a substantial length of the first side.
8. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the support member includes a first mounting latch.
9. The electrical connect of claim 1 wherein the support member includes a first anchor tab.
10. The electrical connector of claim 8 wherein the mounting latch is a clamping device configured to clamp onto the first side of the housing.
11. The electrical connector of claim 8 wherein the first mounting latch includes upper and lower tabs that are received by a first latch slot on the first surface of the housing and a second latch slot on the second surface of the housing, respectively, such that the tabs are retained therein to secure the support member to the first side.
12. The electrical connector of claim 11 wherein the support member includes a second mounting latch with upper and lower tabs received by third and fourth latch slots, respectively, on the insulative housing, wherein the first and second mounting latches are located on opposite first and second ends, respectively, of the support member.
13. The electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the support member includes a center beam that is substantially parallel with the first side, an upper wall that extends over the first surface of the housing, and a lower wall that extends over the second surface of the housing.
14. The electrical connector of claim 13 wherein the support member includes an anchor tab attached to the main beam, the anchor tab extending outside of the lower wall.
15. The electrical connector of claim 13 wherein the support member further includes a second mounting latch, the first and second mounting latches being disposed at first and second ends of the support member, respectively, and a second anchor tab, the first and second anchor tabs being disposed just inside the first and second mounting latches, the anchor tabs extending beyond the second surface of the insulative housing such that the lower wall is disposed between the anchor tabs and the mounting latches.
16. The electrical connector of claim 14 wherein the anchor tab is soldered to a component of an electrical assembly.
17. A support member for an electrical connector comprising:
- a center beam,
- a first mounting latch, the mounting latch including upper and lower tabs configured to be received by respective slots on an insulative housing of the electrical connector to mount the support member thereto.
18. The support member of claim 17 wherein the mounting latch is a clamping device.
19. The support member of claim 17 further comprising a second mounting latch including upper and lower tabs.
20. The support member of claim 17 wherein the upper and lower tabs converge towards each other as they extend away from the center beam.
21. The support member of claim 17 further comprising an upper wall and a lower wall that extend out substantially perpendicular to the center beam.
22. The support member of claim 17 further comprising an anchor tab attached to the main beam.
23. The support member of claim 22 wherein the anchor tab extends to the outside of the lower tab.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 6, 2008
Publication Date: Sep 10, 2009
Applicant: Cinch Connectors, Inc. (Lombard, IL)
Inventors: David W. Mendenhall (Naperville, IL), Hecham K. Elkhatib (Aurora, IL), Alan A. Raclawski (Schaumburg, IL)
Application Number: 12/074,812
International Classification: H01R 12/00 (20060101); H01R 13/62 (20060101); H01R 13/40 (20060101); H01R 13/648 (20060101);